Virtual Sport, New Design, A Respite, Not news I want

Last night after work I got to spend some more time in my new world of virtual reality courtesy of the Oculus Quest 2.  I did some of the same stuff as I did previously including watching some movie, hanging out in virtual chat, and browsing the library for more experiences to download and try.  However the most interesting and fun thing I did was install and play the table tennis title.

The realism is mind blowing.  The physics of the ball is perfect and I really felt like I was playing real games.  I practiced against the AI for awhile and then wound up playing a few matches against another person.  The integrated A/V system allows for seamless, clear and easy conversation.  The guy was from up in the Florida panhandle.  I definitely need to practice more but it was a lot of fun.  I do need to be careful with my reach, a few times I felt like I was dangerously close to hitting the TV.

So far I love most things about the Quest 2. Really the only two complaints I have is the headset is the not most comfortable thing to wear and I chew up battery pretty quickly.  I am addressing the first complaint with the upgraded strap that Oculus sells.  It’s clearly a superior design and also clearly a money grab.  They should have included this strap from the get go.  The battery issue could be addressed by adding a head strap that incorporates an extra battery into it or, I can just plug it into a power source to do extended seated VR things.

I ordered some new stickers to include with my 3D printed stand orders.  I put some time into adding some more flair to the stickers this time.  Instead of just the graphic and words on a white background I added a camo backing and tweaked the graphic to better match the color scheme.  Cindy gave me some suggestions that I incorporated into the final outcome.  I like the end result and I think people that get them will as well.

I was not looking forward to having to work again for the second weekend in a row on a much bigger project at our main office.  I got word that the install had been postponed due to a lack of equipment.  It would have been nice to have the work over and done with but to be honest I was happy to hear of the delay.

Last night on the way home I got a call from my dad.  You may recall that Maggie, his beloved dog of nearly 16 years died earlier this year.  My dad took her death very hard.  He even took a cross country drive with her ashes, spreading them at the various places he and my stepmom lived.  It was his way of trying to deal with the loss.

So anyway, he told me that they now found out that Clara, their other dog has non-operable, fast spreading cancer that will likely be her demise sooner rather than later.  The timing, right on the heels of losing Maggie is awful.  When I was up in PA in June Clara still seemed to be doing fine albeit slower due to being around 14 years old.  To hear that she was this ill was a shock.  He said she is still eating and getting around ok but has some symptoms like weird shaking at times.  I was somewhat relieved to hear that dad was at least amenable to putting her down if she appeared to be really suffering, although my stepmom would be the one that would have to do it.

Dad also told me that they recently lost a sheep to bloat which is a weird but deadly condition where the animal gets excess gas in one of their stomachs that they can’t release.  The end result is an inability to eat and eventual death.  It can be caused by something as simple as the sheep consuming too much of something that produces gas in the digestive system.

I did my best to console my dad but there wasn’t much I could do other than listen.  Loving animals is one the core things of my being.  Unfortunately that love also makes the loss of them a very painful side effect that affects me deeply.  It seems that trait is something I got from my dad as my mom never seemed to be attached to any animal in our family in a significant way that I can remember.